How To Windows Cobian Backup v11.2.0.582 A Full Review of Cobian Backup, a Free Backup Software Program Share Pin Email Print © Luis Cobian Windows Guides & Tutorials System & Security Customizing File & Folder Management Users & Accounts Drivers & Hardware Drive Management Basics Installing & Upgrading Tips & Tricks Key Concepts by Tim Fisher Tim Fisher has 30+ years' professional technology support experience. He writes troubleshooting content and is the General Manager of Lifewire. Updated October 02, 2019 27 27 people found this article helpful Cobian Backup is free backup software that can back up to compressed archives on a hard drive or FTP server. There are so many settings in Cobian Backup that customizing a backup to your liking certainly won't be an issue! Download Cobian Backup This review is of Cobian Backup v11.2.0.582, released on December 6, 2012. Cobian Backup: Methods, Sources, & Destinations The types of backup supported, as well as what on your computer can be selected for backup and where it can be backed up to, are the most important aspects to consider when choosing a backup software program. Here's that information for Cobian Backup: Supported Backup Methods: Cobian Backup supports full backup, differential backup, and incremental backup. A dummy backup mode is also supported, which uses a backup job as a task scheduler to run programs or scripts without actually backing up any data. Supported Backup Sources: Data from an FTP server, local drive, network folder, or external drive can be backed up with Cobian Backup. Supported Backup Destinations: Cobian Backup can back up files to a local, external, or network folder as well as an FTP server. More About Cobian Backup Though only Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2008/2003 are officially supported, I was also able to run Cobian Backup in Windows 10 and Windows 8 without any issuesBoth 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows are supportedBackup to more than one destination at onceCobian Backup shows hints for every option for more information on what it doesSupports drag and drop when adding source and destination locationsPause a running backupRun a backup job as a different userControl Cobian Backup remotely from another computerSchedule a backup to run on startup, manually, once, daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, or on a timerCustom ZIP or 7Z compression levels as well as support for encrypting file namesSplit a backup into small sizes for use on things like floppy disks, CDs, or DVDsOption to compress each file individually or the entire backup sourceCobian Backup lets you define a limit to the maximum speed of FTP transfersAble to automatically delete any empty folders from the destination path after a backup has completedModify the priority Cobian Backup has over other programs with a low, normal, or high settingIncludes command line supportEasily include/exclude subfolders from a backup jobRun missed backup jobs automaticallyPassword protection with AES-256 encryption is supported in Cobian BackupUses Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) to back up locked filesPrevent backup jobs from running if the computer sleeping or is running on battery onlyInclude and/or exclude files from a backup by directory/size/creation date and/or file typeSpecific file types can be stored in a backup archive as uncompressedBefore a backup job is launched, Cobian Backup can do one or all of the following: run an executable like (like a BAT, CMD, or EXE), run a custom command, close an open program, or start/stop a servicePost backup tasks include all of the pre-backup task options as well as start another task, sleep/hibernate/reboot/shutdown the computerDefine the number of backups to keep before older ones are removedProtect Cobian Backup with a master passwordCan optionally retain the full source path in the backup destinationThe log file can be emailed to one or more recipients on success or failure of a backupGroup similar backup jobs together for easy organization My Thoughts on Cobian Backup There are many things to like about Cobian Backup, but it also has its limitations. What I Like: The best thing about Cobian Backup isn't necessarily a single feature but just the fact that you can choose such particular options for a backup. There are plenty of settings included in Cobian Backup that similar software may have, but I like that you can find nearly all of them in this one program. I also appreciate how thorough the hints are in Cobian Backup. You can hover your mouse over nearly any setting or text area to view a small explanatory window to help you understand what that particular feature or option will do. What I Don't Like: You can't restore files with Cobian Backup as easy as you can with similar products. It's true that you're able to browse the destination folder and pick out the files you wish to take, or "restore," but unlike other backup software, Cobian Backup doesn't have an easy button to do so. I also don't like how Cobian Backup handles low disk space. If during a backup, the destination drive becomes full and unable to hold any more files, you aren't notified of it. Instead, the files stop backing up and errors are shown in the log. It would be nice to get a popup notification so that you clearly understand that not all your files were backed up, instead of having to crawl through the log files to see if they were. To download the latest version of Cobian Backup, choose the topmost link called Cobian Backup 11 (Gravity) on the download page. Download Cobian Backup Continue Reading